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Black hole in Lehman’s UK pension fund
23.09.08
A £100million black hole has emerged in the UK staff pension fund of collapsed investment bank Lehman Brothers.
The shortfall means many former Lehman staff in Britain may not be paid in full what they are owed in retirement. Trustees of the fund have written to the Pension Protection Fund for help.
It follows the collapse of the Wall Street banking giant last week. The size of the shortfall surprised analysts.
Administrators PricewaterhouseCoopers confirmed the £100million deficit, which compares with total assets in the fund of just £180million.
Experts warned there could be only 50p or less in the pot for every £1 of pension owed to staff.
John Ralfe, a pensions consultant, said: "One way or another, the members of Lehman's UK pension scheme will move out."
It was yet another blow to the Lehman staff in Canary Wharf who lost their jobs last week, as well as to former employees.
